Friday, February 28, 2014

Yesterday, Fr. Scott Belina and I went out cross-country skiing at the Visitors Interpretive Center in Paul Smiths. It was his first time and, despite some "mechanical" issues and VERY fast/icy conditions, he still seemed to genuinely enjoy himself. What a good sport! (We're both feeling the after effects today.) With a few minor detours, we followed the 3-mile "Woods + Water Trail" from from end to end, and then back again. It was pretty cold out, but still a great day to be in the woods. A few scenes from from our little trek...

February is getting on, and the forecast is making snow conditions for the rest of the month a bit of a wildcard, so securing the second month of my year-long challenge was getting crucial. I checked in with Fr. Scott Belina, who had expressed interest in camping out again...but we just couldn't make our schedules line up with the time we each had available. (We may explore some backcountry next week...but not overnight.) So if I was going to spend a night out in February, it looked like I would have to do it solo...and that's just what I did on Wednesday-Thursday. I'd just re-watched Into the Wild on Sunday evening, so I was pumped to give this a try. (Don't worry: I have NO plans to take off for Alaska!)

My destination was the Grass Pond lean to, along the Hays Brook horse/XC ski trails in the Debar Mountain Wild Forest (named for the summit I mostly climbed a week earlier)--about 30 miles south of here, not too far outside of Paul Smiths. It's an area I've skied and snowshoed before several times, as well as hiked through in warmer seasons: very familiar turf for my first night alone in the woods.

It's about 2 miles in from the parking area to the lean to (although the DEC sign at the register says it's 3, and I've seen other sources that cut it down to about 1.75). About 3:30pm Wednesday afternoon, I strapped on my snowshoes, hitched up my pack, and headed in.

The trail soon crosses a narrow portion of the Osgood River (flowing northward out of Osgood Pond, where last March I went ice fishing) and then winds just a bit through rather gentle terrain on its way to Grass Pond.

I got to my home-away-from-home nearly exactly an hour later. My first task was to gather some firewood while daylight was on my side. This would be much more for ambiance than to provide a necessary heat source. After all, the forecast was for the upper teens above zero overnight--almost 30 degrees warmer than my last camping expedition--and very little wind. After that, I unpacked all my gear and started to settle in.

I really had deluxe accommodations: there was a comfy bed and a gourmet kitchen...

...plenty of storage and a private bath...

...and then, of course, there was the lovely view right out the front window...I mean the front door...I mean...whatever...

And did I mention the beautiful fireplace?

I passed the evening by saying my prayers (there's no vacation from one's vocation) and reading--great ways to soak up the peace and quiet--and took my leisure in the morning, enjoying a second cup of tea after breakfast.

(If you're wondering where I got such unique tea, Fr. Tom brought it back for me from Alabama. "It Just Soothes My Soul.")

But my full time occupation really was staying warm, a task for which I was given invaluable assistance by my down filled booties:

You may mock them for their "moon boot" appearance...but they sure get the job done when you're winter camping!

When everything was all packed up again late Thursday morning, I took a few steps out onto the frozen pond to take in the sights...

...and then it was back on the trail, making the two-mile return trip to the trailhead and my car. I shaved about 10 minutes off my time walking in...but probably because I'd also shaved about 10 pounds from the weight of my pack, having eaten my food and used 3/4 of my water.

Of course, after enjoying such deluxe accommodations, one must be sure to sign the guest book.

On the way out, I met up with a family on skis: mom, three kids, and dad bringing up the rear. He and I stopped for moment to make small talk. He inquired a bit about my overnight, and we then chatted about the weather and what it was doing to the trail conditions. He then asked, "So you're headed back to work tomorrow?" I barely stopped myself from answering, "Yup! Back to the real world!"

I thought about that comment all the rest of the way.

People keep asking, "Why?" when they hear about my short forays into the wilderness. I think I'd have to say, "It's to stay in touch with the real world." So much of our day-to-day existence has gotten so very artificial: from the food we eat to the environments in which we live to the ways we communicate with one another. When you're camping, everything necessarily stays pretty real. Life is reduced to the essentials, and there's not much room for pretense.

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Today's adventure took me to 3305 foot Debar Mountain--not a "high peak," but one of the highest near here (about 20 miles south of Malone). An 1872 guidebook referred to it as "a savage looking peak." "Savage" is a pretty strong word, but when I saw it across Clear Pond as I started out from NYS Route 30 at the entrance to Meacham Lake State Campground, I had my concerns about what I was setting out to do...

That's Black Peak in the foreground, Debar standing tall behind.

A 1.25 mile ski took me through the campground to the trailhead. It's 3.7 miles from there to the summit, with an over 1600 foot gain in elevation--half of it in the last half mile. More on that later...

The next 1.2 miles of trail where shared with snowmobilers (although I didn't see very many of them), and then it was a left turn deeper into the woods. I kept the skis on for quite awhile further (probably further than I should have) before switching to snowshoes when the trail started to climb a bit more.

Before the last "big push" (mentioned above), there's an old lean to (some of the graffiti is dated from the mid-1960's) that's pretty rough around the edges, but was a perfect place for a bite and a break.

The lean to would also prove to be my final destination for the day. It was 2:30pm, a storm was forecast to be rolling in, I still had better than 4 miles back to the car without pushing ahead any further...and I'd promised to make dinner tonight.

I'd gotten a much closer look at Debar, but the summit will have to wait for another day.

Mary, Virgin and Mother

We fly to your patronage,O holy Mother of God;despise not our petitions

in our necessities,but deliver us from all evil,O glorious and blessed Virgin.

Saint Joseph

Pray for us!

"St. Joseph was

an ordinary sort of man

on whom God relied

to do great things."

--St. Josemaria Escriva

Saint Barnabas

Pray for us!

"...Joseph,

also named by the apostles Barnabas

(which is translated

son of encouragement)..."

--Acts 4:36

Saint Bruno

Pray for us!

"Only those who have experienced

the solitude and silence

of the wilderness

can know the benefit and divine joy

they bring to those who love them."

--St. Bruno

(1030-1101)

Saint Francis of Assisi

Pray for us!

"You should never let anyone

leave your presence in sadness."

--St. Francis of Assisi

(1181-1226)

Saint Philip Neri

Pray for us!

"A servant of God

ought always to be happy."

--St. Philip Neri

(1515-1595)

Saint John Francis Regis

Pray for us!

"No violence of cold, no snows...,

no mountains, or torrents...,

could be an obstacle to his zeal."

--comment of a contemporary

of St. John Francis Regis

(1597-1640)

Saint John Mary Vianney

Pray for us!

"Our faults

are like grains of sand

next to the great mountain

of the mercies of God."

--St. John Vianney

(1786-1859)

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Pray for us!

"The value of life does not depend

upon the place we occupy;

it depends upon the way

we occupy that place."

--St. Thérèse of Lisieux

(1873-1897)

Saint André Bessette

Pray for us!

"It is with the smallest brushes

that the Artist paints

the most exquisitely

beautiful pictures."

--St. André Bessette

(1845-1937)

Blessed Charles de Foucauld

Pray for us!

"The absence of risk

is a sure sign

of mediocrity."

--Blessed Charles de Foucauld

(1858-1916)

Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati

Pray for us!

"The higher we go,

the better we shall hear

the voice of Christ."

--Blessed Pier Girogio Frassati

(1901-1925)

Saint John Paul II

Pray for us!

"Up to the evening of your life

remain in wonder and gratitude

for that mysterious call

which one day echoed

in the depths of your spirit:

Follow me!”

--Blessed John Paul II

(1920-2005)

Keep smiling!

“I’m not a man who constantly thinks up jokes. But I think it’s very important to be able to see the funny side of life and its joyful dimension and not to take everything too tragically. I’d also say it’s necessary for my ministry. A writer once said that angels can fly because they don't take themselves too seriously. Maybe we could also fly a bit if we didn’t think we were so important.”